Plymouth-based Plastipak buying Constar International for $102M

Plymouth-based Plastipak Packaging Inc. has emerged as the successful bidder for the U.S. assets of blow molder Constar International Holdings LLC.

Plastipak will pay $102.45 million for Constar's assets, according to a Feb. 6 asset purchase agreement.

According to court documents, Judge Christopher Sontchi in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Wilmington, Del., is scheduled to approve Plastipak's bid on Monday. Trevose, Pa.-based Constar had filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors in December.

The sale of Constar's assets started in bankruptcy court, but they ended up in a bidding war between two of North America's largest blow molders.

Hawthorn, Australia-based Amcor Ltd. originally looked like it was going to end up the winner. It was the stalking horse bidder when Constar first filed for protection on Dec. 19. Amcor is North America's largest blow molder, according to Plastics News data — the company's regional headquarters is in Ann Arbor.

But Constar said the transaction with Amcor was subject to higher and better offers, and within a few weeks after the deal was announced, two other potential bidders emerged: Plastipak and Atlanta-based CKS Packaging Inc. Both filed objections with the court over the rules Amcor and Constar had set up for the sale.

On Thursday, Amcor announced that it was dropping its bid for Constar. An Amcor spokesman explained to Plastics News that it had been outbid by another company. At the time, the spokesman would not name the actual buyer.

The deal generated attention in the packaging sector, in part because of their history. Constar was a pioneer in the PET bottle business, and a few decades ago Constar and Amcor's U.S. predecessor — Johnson Controls Inc. — were major rivals and the top two blow molders in North America, according to Plastics News' rankings.